Thanks for your input. To reiterate, I'm using the databricks Runtime 15.4 cluster, and I have the following permissions over the external location,

1. create external table
2. read files
3. write files

So I think I have enough privileges over the external location. In addition to this, I have CSV and JSON files in the same container and directory for which I'm able to create and display df without any issues. I believe only for excel files the error occurs. If I'm having the required permissions, then why is the error based on permissions `[INSUFFICIENT_PERMISSIONS] Insufficient privileges.